Details - Platte County Economic Development

Issue XX I
March-April 2009
Helping Business Ideas Become Reality
The WADCO Word
PCED—Rolling Out a New Look.
BROCHURE READY; WEBSITE
COMPLETION DATE IN MAY
The Platte County Economic
Development Corporation brochure has been edited and
modified slightly this month
and is ready to go to press.
Our goal is to have the brochure ready to hand out at our
April 15 Board Meeting.
Meetings with Laora Tercosi
and Val Martin have resulted
in very positive news for the
website. The entire project
should be up and going in late
May. A sample of a web page
is shown below.
INDEX
Sample Page from the PCED web site
PCED...Rolling out a
New Look
Thinking out of the
Bowl
Simply Creative
Making a Difference
Meet Chuck Ruwart
BIODIGESTER FEASIBILITY
STUDY GRANT TO CONTINUE
Jeff Brown, PCED Chairman,
received word on March 9 that
USDA Rural Development Manager, Lorraine Werner, has
given us the “go ahead” to
work on the biodigester feasibility study for Double S Livestock. The concern that the
project might not be able to
continue came about as a result of the name change from
WADCO to PCED.
NEW RECYCLING FACILITY
COMING TO WHEATLAND?
Mayor Dean Hensel, Councilman Bob Shoemaker, Deanne
Hensel, Kathy Jones from Missouri Basin Power Project, Dan
Brecht, PCED director, and
Justin Herdt, volunteer at the
Wheatland Area Recycling
Center, toured the recycling
facility in Cheyenne on February 27th. The facility, which
handles recycled aluminum, tin
cans, white paper, office pack,
and cardboard is located adja16th BEAUTIFICATION PROcent to I-25 just off Missile
JECT CLOSE TO REALITY
Drive. Regina Meena, director
A group of Wheatland resiof Magic City Enterprises in
dents who have long wanted
Cheyenne, gave the tour and
to see something done with
explained how their facility
the eyesore along 16th Street works. A task force made up
came one step closer in late
of 7 Wheatland individuals will
March with the approval of the work closely with Magic City
project by Regional Director,
and the Town of Wheatland to
Jack Bell. The group consists
try to come up with a plan that
of 5 members: Keith Geis,
will satisfy everyone involved
Tina Crites, Dan Brecht, Darand provide more convenient
rell Vaughn and Sue Schamel. recycling (continued on p. 5)
Page 1
Community Happenings
Page 5
Page 2
PCED Membership
Page 6
Page 3
Page 4
Page 2
Thinking
Board of Directors
“Out of the Bowl”
Is there a correlation
between “thinking out of the
bowl” and being a “fish out of
water?” Probably not, but it
sounded like a great way for
me to begin this new column.
Well, new to me, at least.
After 35 years of teaching
mostly 5th and 6th graders, it
was a bit scary to be seen out
on the streets of Wheatland
during daylight hours on a
week day. It was even more
of a stretch when I walked
into Jeff Brown’s office unannounced one afternoon in
February and asked for an opportunity
to interview for
the PCED
director
position.
Jeff,
being the
low-
keyed person that he is, was
very cordial and encouraged
me to apply.
I had to redo my resume (I believe the last time I
updated it I was in my early
30’s) which took some doing
since everything I’d done previously pertained to grade levels taught, important educators in my life, and education
classes from U.W. that most
influenced my decision to
teach middle school kids.
Now, as I sit in my new
office behind Sherard Realty,
I’m really having to think outside the box (or, out of the
bowl, if you prefer), doing
things beyond my normal
comfort zone, and spending
entire days talking to people
who aren’t 12 years old!
All I can say is this,
“Change is good.”
Jeff Brown—Chairman
First State Bank
Mona Sherard-Vice Chairwoman
Sherard Realty
Jennifer Windmeier-Secretary
Wells Fargo Bank
Chuck Ruwart —Treasurer
Laramie Peak Motors
Alan Madsen
Premier Title Company
Thane Ashenhurst
Drube Supply
Cindy Kahler
Town of Wheatland
Terry Stevenson
Platte County Commissioners
Keith Geis
Platte Valley Bank
Eric McVicker
Platte County Memorial Hospital
Bonnie Johnson
Scissors Ranch
Mona Sherard
Sherard Realty
Stuart Nelson
Platte County School District #1
Col. Joe Dunn
Camp Guernsey
Claudia Teeters-Ex-Officio
Tom Johnson
Wyoming Business Council
Dan Brecht, Executive Director
Cindy Shaffer, Executive Assistant
Mission Statement
Platte County Economic Development Corporation promotes and
facilitates business and industry
endeavors for current and future
generations
Page 3
Simply Creative
Uses Creative
Market Strategy
In this depressed economy when we are seeing retail
businesses lock their doors and
shutter their windows, how is
it that some businesses are
able to thrive? Part of the answer lies, undoubtedly, in the
type of business. Perhaps location also enters into the survival equation. The marketing
strategy a retail business uses
is definitely a factor.
I think there’s an even
more important factor to success, and it borders on being
magic. You might call it
“business savvy,” you might
call it charisma, and, I’m sure,
some would just call it luck.
But it isn’t luck at all.
After sharing some concerns with Genia Vineyard at
her flower and gift store in
early March, I said to myself,
”Here is someone who knows
how to beat the downturn.”
Wanting her to share
What’s New
some of her marketing strategies with others, I called her
on the phone last week and
invited her to come to my office for an interview. Here’s
what I learned.
“Don’t sit on your
hands!” Those were her opening remarks. It got better
from there, and I immediately
knew this was someone who
knew how to make a business
model that worked. She continued by reminding me and all
retailers that there are lots of
resources out there...classes,
internet ideas, books, and people with experience...who can
continually give you new ideas
and get you excited all over
again. Genia is a firm believer
that our downtown area should
not only survive, but it should
thrive; and she thinks it can be
done. “There’s more to customer service than a smile on
your face. (Cont’d. on p. 6)
I don’t know if this
will be a functional use of
space or not, but I have an
idea I’d like to try. All of
you who are reading this
newsletter might have new
items in your place of business, new ideas to make
Wheatland and Platte
County even better places
to live than they already
are, or you might have a
new recipe you’d like to
share with the rest of the
reading world...we can hope
that circulation might someday reach that far.
As part of the deal,
I’ll go first, but I want YOU
to step forward and contribute your two cents worth
for the remainder of these
articles. Just email your
contribution to:
dcbrecht@yahoo.com
Here are my two contributions: Mona Sherard
set up 3 recycling tubs in
the hall way for us to use.
She has (cont’d on page 4)
Making a Difference
We live in great little
community. I think we all agree
that, other than the wind,
Wheatland is just about perfect.
I think there are some good reasons why that is. It’s called volunteerism.
Have you ever stopped to
think how many times a month
you personally donate your time
or money to a community project? Do you also notice how
you usually see the same folks
volunteering their time as well?
Food for thought...how do
we get others to “share the
load?” Often it can be as simple
as just asking. Volunteerism is
a networking concept, and we
need to add more to the mix.
Page 4
Profile of a PCED Leader…
Chuck Ruwart
It was with great interest that I called Laramie Peak
Motors this week to see if I
could schedule an interview
with Chuck Ruwart, owner of
Laramie Peak Motors in
Wheatland. I’ve known Chuck
for several years, not just as
the owner of the Ford dealership, but also as the father of
several of my sixth grade students in recent years.
Chuck grew up in the
Denver area, and after graduation from a parochial high
school in Canon City, Colorado,
he attended college at Notre
Dame University, earning a
BBA with a major in finance
and a minor in accounting.
From there he worked in
banking for a time but
then moved to Phoenix where he was the
fleet manager for a
national car rental
franchise. From
there he moved to
Virginia where he
worked for a Cadillac dealership.
It was at that time that
he made a major change in his
life and moved his young family to Wheatland in the early
1990’s. The rest is history.
Chuck and his brother,
Bob, both own successful car
dealerships in Wheatland, and
their market extends far beyond Wheatland and Platte
County.
I was interested in
learning how the mind of
someone that successful
worked, and I think I’ve
learned a few of his secrets.
First, Chuck believes in
slow, but steady economic
growth for his business and for
our community. He also
feels strongly that
competition is a
good thing. Where
any successful business is concerned,
“You have to try to
exceed expectations
and give people a
great value for the
money.”
“We get entirely
too involved
(Cont’d. on
P. 6)
Chuck Ruwart owns Laramie Peak Motors on 16th
Street in Wheatland. He is also treasurer of the Platte
County Economic Development Corporation. Chuck
strongly believes “You have to try to exceed expectations and give people a great value for the money.”
WHAT”S NEW (Cont’d from p3)
a head start on the rest of us
who want to be a part of the
new recycling effort being
made in Wheatland (see p. 1)
We have 3 large plastic trash
tubs with lids. One is for
newsprint, one is for all other
paper, and the third is for all
the aluminum, tin, plastic and
glass containers. We also
have a box which we are using
to collect all the old phone
books that are no longer
needed with the onslaught of
new books coming into all our
offices.
The newest addition to our office at 1560 Johnston is a
great big plant donated by
Missouri Basin Power Project
(Thank you, Kathy Jones).
Last of all, our office is working
with Crile Carvey and crew on
our very own website, and it’s
going to have a little bit of
everything Platte County in it.
I hope we can have it out in
May. It will be a first for our
fine organization, and something that we think will really
help Wheatland and Platte
County get the recognition it
deserves. If you see changes
that need to be made, please
contact the office. Thanks, Dan
Page 5
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Community Happenings
APRIL
4-7 World Strides Trip (WMS)
5 Palm Sunday
6 Chugwater T.C. 7PM
7 PC Comm. Meeting8:30 PM
7 Guernsey T. C. 7 PM
9 Passover
9 PCCC Luncheon 12:10 PM
12 Easter Sunday
13 Commodities Wheatland
13 Wheatland T. C.7 PM
13 PCSD #1 Brd. Mtng. 7PM
13 PCSD #2 Brd. Mtng. 7 PM
14 WHS Pre-festival Concert
15 PCED Board Meeting 7 AM
22-25 PCL Spring Book Sale
25 KYCN-KZEW Total SpringShow
25 16th St. Tree Planting Day
25 Run with the Wind 5K
25 Casino Night (PCCC)
MAY
2 WHS Junior/Senior Prom
5 WHS Music Concert
9 Hershey Track Meet
9 Aqua Fina Pitch Hit & Run
10 Mother’s Day
11 PCSD #1 Brd. Mtng. 7PM
12 PCSD #2 Brd. Mtng. 7PM
12 WMS Music Concert
13 WHS Baccalaureate
13 WHS Senior last day
15-16 WHS Reg. Track
16 Chugwater HS Graduation
16 Glendo HS Graduation
16 Wheatland HS Graduation
18 WMS Honors Recpt.
22 Last day of school for students (Sch. Dist. 1 & 2)
25 Memorial Day
26 Guernsey HS Graduation
JUNE
1 Wheatland Pool opens
14 Flag Day
21 Father’s Day
21 Summer Solstice
TIP OF THE MONTH
Always give your business name and
your name when taking a call. The
person calling wants to know that
they’ve reached the right business
and who they are talking to.
RECYCLING (Cont’d from p.1)
...for the community.
And what about job
creation? When asked that
question, Regina expounded
on how their Cheyenne-based
facility hires several handicapped adults to work at the
facility as well as several others in managerial positions.
Wheatland’s operation
would be considerably smaller,
of course, but would still require a manager who could be
hired locally as well as one or
two handicapped adults.
As far as a location for
the new facility is concerned,
Regina and her staff will be in
Wheatland in early April to
look at some potential sites,
meet with the Recycling Task
Force group, and begin the
process of putting a master
plan together.
In the meantime, a survey will be sent to businesses
in the community to get input.
Page 6
2008-2009 Membership
Our People Make the Difference
Amazing Monogramming
Anderson Dental, PC
Bank of the West
Bloedorn Lumber
BlueWire
Bob Ruwart Motors
Briggs & Company
Britz, William (Dr.)
Burns Insurance
Cinema West Theatre
Crile Carvey Consulting
Dance Wyoming
Double S Livestock
Drube Supply
First American Title
First State Bank
Geringer Group
Gorman Funeral Homes, Inc.
H & H Concrete Construction
Integrity Cabinets & Millwork
Johnson, Bonnie
Laramie Peak Motors
Laramie Peak Realty
Mader, Tschacher, Peterson & Co
Mike’s Printing
Ninth Street Cafe
Norb Olind Construction
Notch Peak Ranch
Noyce’s Friendly Shop
Parmley & Associates
Peak Wellness Center
Platte County Commissioners
Platte County Memorial Hospital
Platte County Parks & Rec.
Platte County Record Times
Platte County School District #1
Platte Valley Insurance Center
Platte Valley Bank
Premier Title Company
Qwest
Quilt Rustler
SIMPLY CREATIVE (From P. 3)
CHUCK RUWART (From P. 4)
First you have to give people a reason to want to come in your store.
You must stay in tune with the needs
of your customers and use creative
marketing strategies..” Genia has
been very successful in these respects. For example, she offers great
fundraising opportunities for groups
in the community whether they are
school groups or others needing to
raise funds. She is also quite generous with gift certificates. Her rationale behind gift certificates is that
when folks come in to redeem them
they are one more customer in her
store.
She constantly networks with
others in the region who have similar
retail businesses, sharing ideas and
resources.
Her final words really hit
home. “We are all in this together,
and we need to support each other.
Be Positive.” Wise words, I’d say.
in numbers. We must give people a
service or product they want. We
have to give them a reason why they
should shop at home by offering
excellent service, adequate selection, and doing the little things people like. Above all show your customers that you appreciate them
every chance you get.” That’s
something I’ve heard a great deal
since starting this job, and it’s something I took to heart when I owned
and operated the Blackbird Inn.
Platte County Economic Development
P.O. Box 988 ·1560 Johnson
Wheatland, WY 82201
Seidel Construction
Shepard Farms
Sherard & Johnson Law Office
Sherard Realty
Source Gas
State Farm Insurance
Stoll Brothers
TDS Trash Service
Turf Master LLC
Weaver, Cathy (CPA)
Weaver, Doug (Attorney)
Wells Fargo Bank
Wheatland Golf Club
Wheatland REA
Wheatland, Town of
Wheatland Workforce Center
Whitehead Construction, Inc.
Jeff Wilhelm
Wyoming Business Council
Wyoming Pure Beef, LLC
.
Chuck tries hard to support kids, the
community, sports teams and schools
He is very active in the community,
the schools and his Church. He is a
devoted family man, and runs the car
dealership to boot. That’s a lot on one
plate.
I thought Chuck’s ideas about
how we might make our community
healthier were interesting. “I think
that we are on the edge of economic
growth. Wind makes this a hard place
to live, but if it brings the wind industry to the county that’s a very positive
thing. The wind is basically our
strength and a challenge to overcome.”
As a good businessman
should, Chuck ended our interview on
a positive note. “We all have to speak
on the same page and welcome new
folks to our community.” Well said,
Chuck.
Helping Business Ideas Become Realty